For What It's Worth
by OnyxJinx
Summary: Did she make the right choice? Seven moments of uncertainty. Drabbles for Caesar's Palace Shipping week. Everlark, Odesta, Hayffie and more. Plus a bonus chapter.
1. Chapter 1

**_For Caesar's Palace Shipping week! - Finnick/Annie  
_**_Inspired by Hyperballad by Bjork._

.xox.

Bright eyes watch the green glass fall to the rocks; it shatters before being swallowed by the waves. She counts the seconds and listens. Would she sound like the drift wood flung from the cliff, or the rusty barrel that took her all morning to transport up the hill? It's only a passing thought that comes with the small destruction.

He is still asleep when she returns, soft and warm in their small bed; curled in the stiff sheets dried by the wind, his soft snoring reflects his content. She balls her fists at her side, angry at the Capitol, angry that he will leave again, angry at everything. Her fingers relax when she remembers she threw all that away over the cliff.

Nestling beside him, warming her salt-kissed skin against his, makes it all worth it.


	2. Chapter 2

**_For Caesar's Palace Shipping Week - Cato/Katniss_**

.xox.

"So, we're agreed? We wait until the finale?" she asks, quickly taming her braid back into place.

"Hey, you're not the only good actor around here. We play the Game as planned, but keep our distance, you know? I won't be able to hold everyone back, so just play along if something happens." The bed shifts as he settles back down behind her. His breath on her bare shoulder sends a wave of sickening shame through her.

"Don't be upset, it's for the best," he continues softly, feigning reassurance. "Two of the highest scores going head to head in the finale, everyone will love it. You'll get a few more days to live, and I will have the greatest homecoming 2 has ever seen. Thanks for the game plan, and well, you know."

He stands and buckles his belt. She tightens her grip on the sheet around her.

"See you in the finale."

She holds her breath until she hears the door open then close. How much more of herself will she have to give to these Games? Will any of it be worth it?


	3. Chapter 3

_**For Caesar's Palace Shipping Week - Effie/Haymitch**_

.xox.

She carefully brushes a stray hair back into place on her blue wig; tonight it will remain on the vanity. Instead of a painfully tight bun, her light brown hair relaxes at her shoulders with a soft curl. Powdered foundation is applied softly over any stains left from her usual mask and a thin black line accent her eyes. Her toes wiggle in the simple flats she has chosen for the evening and the slim cocktail dress actually allows her to breathe.

Years prior, big names have never been known to attend this event, so her grand appearance will not be needed. She hardly recognizes herself and knows for sure anyone drunk enough won't either. Before she turns the knob to her door, she refreshes her tongue with phrases in the accent from her home District.

She will get her Victor one way or another, and for her, it will all be worth it.


	4. Chapter 4

_**For Ceasar's Palace Shipping Week - Wiress/Beetee**_

.xox.

She thrived in her solitude, her isolation. She imagined herself a little creature buried away, feeding on numbers and schematics. Her only friends were those of forgotten fables and rhymes. Completely alone with no one to explain why or how things were. She liked it that way.

She made sure to keep the odds in her favor, statistically speaking, making it 1:3,985. Carefully calculating the census every year before the reaping, the probability kept her mind at ease and left room for the foxes to jump over the lazy dogs. Unfortunately, the statistic was not a guarantee. When her name was drawn, everything and everyone invaded all that was special and sacred to her. Uninterested in what her mind had to offer, but what her hands could do to end a life. She complied, yet they still did not understand.

Except for him.

Not only did he possess a comparable genius, he held every aspect of her being in his own. No longer were his laboratory mice and her story book gnomes their only companions. Equations and elements supplied the foundation of their language and changing a single letter would send the two erupting in laughter. Burners and coils were not the only supplier of fire and electricity when an experiment took place.

For every negative there is a positive. Because of 1:3,985 and 1:23 she found her solution to an equation she never realized existed. But was is worth it?


	5. Chapter 5

**_For Ceasar's Palace Shipping Week - Johanna/Katniss_**

.xox.

I wonder if she would bite back? Or if she would just take it? What would she sound like? She's pretty quiet; I could take her in the stairwell and no one would notice. Unless she's one of those kinky screamers, like my therapist.

I wonder what she would taste like? The stairwell would make an excellent location to wet my whistle. Stairs are a lot more comfortable than you think. But what if she's picky and takes forever and needs some acrobatic, multitasking, tantric miracle to happen? The woods might be an option. Unless they have cameras set up out there too?

I wonder if she's ever thought about another girl before? Or would I just freak her out? C'mon, everyone has needs. We all need to burn off a little stress. I have my list of outlets in this underground buffet of lonely hearts, but for her, there's not much to choose from. Her man would rather kill her than fuck her, or maybe both, just not in that order. And that other one, he's already a pathetic puppy as it is. He'd be a wreck if she let him anywhere near her goods. I might have to jump him as a favor to keep his balls from turning purple.

You know what I really like? Long hair to grab onto, easier to steer them in the right direction. I like scars too, like she has, inside and out. The only difference between me and her is she has everything to lose. I just want to have a little bit of fun. But would it be worth it for her?


	6. Chapter 6

_**For Ceasar's Palace Shipping Week - Mrs. Everdeen/OC**_

.xox.

He was the first to make her laugh since her residency started in 2. When a nervous child needed some cheering up during an examination, he used all sorts of tricks; once he stretched a latex glove over his head and made chicken sounds. It became easier to laugh with each silly game. After, he would push his wire-framed glasses back into place and smile.

Unlike her husband, he had a much smaller build and incredibly soft hands. Lines creased around his eyes, framing them with a gaiety she thought was lost forever. They shared two very large pieces in their lives that were stolen away in disaster and violence.

The loss of his child is what drove him into medicine. The Capitol denied the severity of a pandemic that broke out across the southeast, making citizens wonder if it was part of another Game. Forced to stand by while children were deliberately destroyed for sport, he refused to let something as preventable as the flu, steal them away too. His wife perished in the District bombings.

Long nights and small quarters made their companionship easy. She would make him her favorite herbal teas and listen to him tell his favorite stories. Soon, his stories involved the two of them.

Panem was rebuilding itself, so why couldn't they? It had to be worth it.


	7. Chapter 7

_**For Caesar's Palace Shipping week - Katniss/Peeta**_

.xox.

It had been almost a year since his last flashback. Life had resumed in its casual way, she almost forgot about the triggers. When she swept up the broken glass, she realized it would never end. He would be in his room for about two days, judging by the severity of the episode. That would give her time to replace the broken vase, broken chair, and broken door. Hopefully the cut on her arm would mend enough to play off as a hunting injury. The bruise she could easily cover.

Outside by the trashcan, she looked down the road and wondered where she would go. This time it wasn't to run from the Games or the Capitol, but from the only person she loved. She wondered if she was the right person for him. Obviously, his progress was still slow and she was the reason for his flashbacks. It would be better for her to just leave. He could find someone new in the District, with no ties to the arena or even to the old 12. He could find someone with no bad memories.

She stepped through the bare door frame, thankful it was Summer this time. Making her way back to the kitchen for tea she stopped in the hallway. There on the wall, hung a painted portrait of the two of them smiling, holding their first born. She would stay after all, because everything, had been worth it.

* * *

**AN: Thanks to Estoma and FinnickO-Loves-AnnieC for the beta help and to you all for reading!**


	8. Chapter 8

_**AN: Bonus chapter for Estoma, inspired by her 'Mersey' drabbles. **_

.xox.

The waves rolled sadly against the rocks as if tired out from their angry protest the night before. The light was slow to creep through the window, cautious of disturbing those still in slumber. Songbirds stalled their routine, prolonging their alarm call. She slowed her breath, slowed her heart and willed the rest of the world to hold still for just a little longer.

Her eyes watered even though there were no more tears to shed, but because she refused to blink. A blink was another second that passed and another second she wouldn't see his face.

She hated goodbyes.


End file.
